The Michigan hockey team’s schedule has been anything but normal for the past month. There was a two-week break between the team’s game with Ferris State and the Great Lakes Invitational at Comerica Park in December, then another two-week hiatus before this weekend’s series against Wisconsin.

And as luck should have it, the No. 9 Wolverines will follow their Wisconsin series with another bye week before playing Michigan State.

“It seems like we're playing one game every two weeks,” Michigan coach Red Berenson said after a recent practice. “I think we'll get better when we get back into school and get a little more structure in our lives.”

No one’s schedule has been more hectic than that of alternate captain Andrew Copp who spent the holiday break playing with Team USA in the World Junior Championships. Copp spent 35 hours traveling over the weekend after tallying five assists in five games played for Team USA in Malmo, Sweden.

Copp said playing with and against the best players in his age group from around the world was an amazing experience. But coming off the ice Tuesday at Yost after his second practice of the day, Copp was visibly exhausted and said he’s ready to return to a normal schedule.

“I think school will help, getting us back into that rhythm and routine that we had in the first half,” Copp said.

Class was back in session for Michigan students Wednesday, and the return to normalcy on the ice begins Friday against No. 14 Wisconsin (8 p.m., Big Ten Network). Though this is the first year the two teams are Big Ten Rivals, the programs aren’t exactly unfamiliar with each other. The Wolverines (10-4-2, 2-0-0 Big Ten) and Badgers (11-6-1, 2-2-0 Big Ten) played for years in the College Hockey Showcase, which featured games between the CCHA and WCHA over Thanksgiving weekend.

Only two players on the current team – seniors Luke Moffatt and Kevin Clare – played the last time the teams played during the 2010 season.

This weekend's series figures to feature two of the league's top goaltenders, statistically, in Wisconsin's Joel Rumpel and Michigan's Zach Nagelvoort. Rumpel has won his past six starts and has a save percentage of .928 with a goals against average of .928.

Only Nagelvoort – with a goals against of 1.78 and save percentage of .928 has been better in the league than Rumpel, though Nagelvoort hasn’t won the Michigan job outright over sophomore Steve Racine. Berenson has been leaving that decision to later in the week and he doesn’t have a definitive plan yet going forward.

“They both showed that they can play well, so I don't have a plan in stone. I've said that we have two goalies that can start and we'll see how that goes in the second half,” Berenson said. “I don't have a plan, I kind of have to let it happen and see if we're a team that plays better in front of one goalie or if one goalie plays better, we'll have to wait and see.”

Freshmen injury updates:

Berenson said freshman center J.T. Compher is “close to 100 percent” after returning faster than expected from a foot injury over holiday break and playing in the GLI. Compher was originally diagnosed with a fracture in his foot while training at the Team USA World Junior evaluation camp, but Michigan’s team doctors determined it was actually a bone bruise.

“He's relieved that it wasn't broken and we're relieved, so he should be fine,” Berenson said.

Freshman Tyler Motte made it further with the World Junior team than Compher, but was sent home from Sweden after the final cuts due to sickness rather than play. According to Berenson, Motte barely trained with Team USA before being sent home.

Though Motte played in the GLI, Berenson said that by the second game Saturday there was nothing left in the tank. Motte practiced fully for the first time Wednesday and Berenson expects him to be 100 percent for the Wisconsin series.

Freshman defenseman Kevin Lohan is back skating with the team and should be a full practice participant soon according to Berenson. Lohan had surgery on his right knee after hurting it against Michigan Tech the first weekend of November. At the time, Berenson eyed three months as a minimum recovery time for Lohan and that that best-case scenario is playing out.

“Lohan is skating with the team mostly. He's a lot closer. I think it'll be closer to the end of January. Week-to-week now, rather than month-to-month,” Berenson said.

Berenson did not know the specifics of Lohan’s injury but said it was in the area behind Lohan’s right knee.